UK gross mortgage lending £20.6 billion in October, says CML

Gross mortgage lending held steady in October and was an estimated £20.6 billion, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders. This closely matches September’s gross lending total of £20.5 billion and is 5% lower than October last year (£21.8 billion).

Housing market sentiment is holding up well, with demand still strong. This has led to a pick up in approvals, as expected. The more pressing issue is on the supply side, where the lack of private sellers continues to be an obstacle for would-be borrowers.

For this reason, we expect lending in the months ahead to be driven more by remortgaging activity and less by house purchases. Remortgaging will be helped by competitively priced mortgage deals, which are encouraging borrowers to refinance.